The Everton starlet wanted by Europe’s elite, Crystal Palace’s £22m deadline day scoop and Liverpool’s next hope: The five uncapped youngsters called up to England’s provisional squad

Maybe a changing of the guard? Maybe. Gareth Southgate appears to have put his faith in youth as he has included a host of emerging young stars in his provisional squad for Euro 2024.

It could be a sign of what’s to come for the England boss, with established names such as Marcus Rashford, Jordan Henderson and Raheem Sterling all missing out on the preliminary 33-man squad for this summer’s tournament in Germany.

However, Southgate has made it clear that he wants to give opportunities to youngsters coming up through the ranks. “We have young players with a lot of caps, there is no reason why young players cannot take charge,” he said on Tuesday.

Anthony Gordon, Kobbie Mainoo and Cole Palmer are three players who have excelled more than anything for their club this season, and are among the rising stars who have already made their debuts for the England senior squad this season.

But the England boss has also opted to include five uncapped players in his provisional squad. Here, Mail Sport’s Joe Bernstein looks at their careers to date and what they can offer the Three Lions manager this summer.

JAMES TRAFFORD (Burnley)

Goalkeeper

Age: 21

Eyebrows were raised when Vincent Kompany returned to former club Manchester City to pay £19 million for a rookie goalkeeper.

The experiment hasn’t helped keep Burnley in the Premier League, but Trafford is still tipped for a successful career.

Trafford did not play for City’s first team but impressed during his loan spells at Accrington and Bolton and arrived at Turf Moor after winning the European Championship with England Under-21s – saving a crucial last-minute penalty.

He was dropped by Burnley in March after keeping just one clean sheet in 28 games and has not played since, but in the same month Southgate gave him a first call-up to the international squad to replace the injured Sam Johnstone.

Trafford is considered to be good with his feet and following the Clarets’ relegation, Newcastle and Liverpool are monitoring his situation.

JARRAD BRANTHWAITE (Everton)

Defender

Age: 21

Everton are indebted to the 6ft 4in centre-back who was brought into the team after a 4-0 defeat at Aston Villa and formed a great partnership with James Tarkowski.

Branthwaite, who started his career at Carlisle, was loaned out to Ruud van Nistelrooy’s PSV Eindhoven last season and his future at Goodison Park looked uncertain until Sean Dyche made the call to bring him on for Michael Keane.

Now there is talk of a £55m bid from Manchester United, with the Merseysiders looking to raise money to ease well-documented financial problems.

Branthwaite is fantastic in the air, a force in both penalty areas and scored three times last season. Being left-footed, he could also be an asset for Southgate if England’s injury problems at left-back persist. He was a non-playing squad member of the England European Under-21 champions and was called up by Southgate in March, although he did not play against Belgium or Brazil.

JARELL QUANSAH (Liverpool)

Defender

Age: 21

Quansah is perhaps the biggest surprise in Southgate’s provisional squad. Quansah only made his Premier League debut in August but has done remarkably well.

A towering centre-back who looks comfortable when he gets on the ball, Quansah spent last season on loan at Bristol Rovers. Virgil van Dijk’s red card at Newcastle gave him an unexpected opportunity to play this season and he is being grabbed with both hands.

The Warrington-born defender was on the pitch as Liverpool won the Carabao Cup this season and was selected ahead of Ibrahima Konate and Joe Gomez to feature in Jurgen Klopp’s last two games, scoring against both Aston Villa and Wolves.

He has timed his run to international recognition perfectly and Klopp is grateful for his consistency at Anfield when others were struck by injury. “How many times did he save our back end in decisive moments,” said the German.

ADAM WHARTON (Crystal Palace)

Midfielder

Age: 20

Having struggled in the Championship with Blackburn Rovers just four months ago, Wharton can now look forward to training with Harry Kane and Declan Rice.

In one of the few significant moves of the January transfer window, joining Palace on deadline day for £22m, Wharton made his debut against Brighton from the bench, but has since started all 15 games as Palace moved to the top half rose.

Wharton is composed on the ball and also likes to tackle, and it is his energy and zeal that makes him a standout in the engine room.

He surpassed Kobbie Mainoo as Palace defeated Manchester United 4–0 towards the end of the season. That performance alone may have convinced Southgate that the youngster deserved a closer look.

CURTIS JONES (Liverpool)

Midfield

Age: 23

Without injuries, Jones may already have achieved senior recognition in England after helping the under-21s become European champions last summer.

When Jones first broke through, Klopp said: “We’re going to have a lot of fun with this boy” because of the way he runs with the ball and tries to get things done.

Injuries have prevented him from securing a regular first-team place at Anfield, including an ankle injury this season, while he has formed a good partnership with Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai. But Southgate has been keeping an eye on the technically gifted schemer, waiting for the right moment to call him up.